1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to improved apparatus for splitting wood in the form of logs which have been previously cut to lengths acceptable for use in a fireplace or stove.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In recent years, energy has come to have an ever higher priority in our society. The constantly increasing prices of oil and natural gas has resulted in a new interest in the use of firewood to supplement, and in some instances, to replace existing home heating systems.
Being generally desirable to employ split wood in a fireplace or wood stove for ease in starting and maintaining the fire, it is necessary for the user to either purchase the wood already split or to split the wood himself. Wood which is already split is generally more costly than unsplit logs. At the same time, it may be difficult for the novice to split logs and, indeed, is an inherently dangerous task. Furthermore, it is time consuming and interruptive of other tasks, even for the person accustomed to it.
In the past, numerous attempts were made to provide devices for the specific purpose of splitting wood. The U.S. Pat. Nos. to Fowler, 53,289, issued Mar. 20, 1866; and to Wagner, 128,830, issued July 9, 1872 are typical of such device which provide a mechanical advantage to the user, the lever providing the mechanical advantage also including an integral blade for engaging and splitting the wood. The U.S. Pat. Nos. to Mors, et al, 280,657, issued July 3, 1883; and to Eiden, 720,010, issued Feb. 10, 1903, disclose more complex devices which employ likages between the operating handle and the blade which is utilized for engaging and splitting the wood. The U.S. Pat. No. to Latus, 168,649, issued Oct. 11, 1875, discloses a somewhat different design in which the base of a pivoted handle is formed as a pinion which engages a rack having an integral blade which is engageable with the end of a log to be split. Movement of the handle, via the pinion and rack, causes the blade to advance into the wood and split it. Also known to the applicant is the Melton U.S. Pat. No. 827,251, issued July 31, 1906, which discloses a timber hewing machine incorporating a ratchet mechanism which constantly assures forward motion of the cutting blade and prevents it from moving backward.
The patents just recited are generally representative of the prior art and, although they were advances in the state of the art at the time that they were conceived, there are a number of drawbacks in the construction of some or all of them which are notable. For example, in many instances, the devices were not readily adjustable to accommodate logs of various sizes. Nor, did the prior patents disclose an ability to quickly reset the splitting device for another stroke through the remainder of the present log or for a stroke through a new log. In many instances, the known devices were heavy and cumbersome so as not to be readily portable. Also, as disclosed, the prior wood splitting devices often did not provide for firmly guiding the blade during the entire splitting process nor was there any provision for enabling a variation in force and speed of the cutting edge as it advances into the log. Another drawback of the known devices was that there was generally no positive provision for holding the handle and blade in inactive positions while removing the split wood and inserting a new log to be split. Furthermore, in some instances, the prior art devices were complex and expensive to manufacture and maintain.